social housing before a baseball stadium in Montreal

MONTREAL - Affordable housing before a baseball stadium at Peel Basin in Montreal: The New Democratic Party (NDP) wants to use available federal land in the country to build new affordable housing. This is one of the solutions that the party proposes to combat the housing crisis.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

Wednesday morning, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh was in Peel Basin, on Federal Crown land located in the Old Port of Montreal. This site is also sought after by business people to build a major league baseball return stadium to Montreal.

If he is elected prime minister, he proposes to start the plan there and offer Montreal’s home “they can afford”.

Solving the current housing crisis is one of the NDP’s most important hobbies, especially in connection with this election campaign. “The housing crisis is hitting hard across the country and in Montreal,” Chief Singh said Wednesday.

The party calls the situation “Justin Trudeau’s housing crisis” and accuses him of not doing anything about federal lands in the Peel Basin, for “making them available to ultra-rich investors”.

Singh is proud to want to help “those in need.”

He supports the idea of ​​a baseball stadium in Montreal, and emphasizes that he knows that this “good idea” is really “popular”.

“But if we’re talking about how we use federal land, we have to use it for social and affordable housing. (…) I’m not helping private groups create a stadium instead of helping people in need of social housing.

“For me, the choice is clear and simple.”

He believes that promoters of a potentially larger baseball stadium can find other sites.

Against the old harbor, he reported on Wednesday morning that residents and housing organizations have already previously requested that available land in the pool be used for the construction of social housing.

One of the goals of NDP’s housing plan is to build 500,000 new social and affordable housing units across the country. He also proposes to work with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to facilitate the purchase of affordable rental housing to avoid the loss of units and prevent speculators.

Who helped Quebec?

New Democratic leader and Bloc Québécois (BQ) leader Yves-François Blanchet crossed the sword again on Wednesday.

Asked how he could win back Quebecers when he is so criticized by the bloc leader whose defense of Quebec’s interests is the mantra, Jagmeet Singh replied that he does not feel threatened by any of the opposition parties in this election campaign.

Quebecers know what to expect, he says. From the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NDP fought for Quebecers, as for other Canadians.

“Without us, the people of Quebec would be in a much worse situation. With us, they managed to get help. ”

According to him, his political formation has achieved several victories that have benefited Quebecers: the extension of the Canadian Emergency Preparedness Benefit (PCU), the increase in the emergency wage subsidy, student aid, he said.

The other opposition parties were “absent” during this extremely difficult period. None of them can claim to have done the same for Quebec. No one could even name a single victory, he said.

According to the bloc leader, an NDP government under Jagmeet Singh would be “worse” than a liberal government and would stifle Quebec under its centralizing grip.

“It would be hyper centralization, totally ideological, irresponsible financially. He (Mr. Singh) would come and tell us “you know in Quebec, not only are you racist but you are not good and I will tell you how it works”. It’s starting to get a little boring. ”

The leader of the bloc criticizes comments by Chief Singh about Ottawa’s role and its tendency to ignore Quebec’s jurisdiction, especially in health. Last week, while responding to an election promise from the Liberal leader about hiring family doctors, the NDP leader pointed out that “when you talk to people, they do not take care of (…) skills. They want to see results”.

“To suggest that Ottawa should intervene because it is misery, one is to claim that Ottawa will do better than Quebec, and that in itself and when he leaves is far fetched. Ottawa has no experience, such as no knowledge. “And Ottawa, in general, or in the big innovations they want to make, whether it’s drug insurance or daycare, they’re inspired by Quebec,” he gave as an example.

Especially since what is missing to solve many problems on Quebec soil is the resources Ottawa is holding back with the conditions, the block leader added.

Stéphanie Marin, The Canadian Press